Lazy Note: Hey there, Strangers. Guess who decided to turn this into a twoshot...? What? No, ME, you dummy. Yeah, because apparently I haven't written enough NathanxWarren. Ah, geez. I'm not really sorry for it, honestly. I ship what I want!

Now, let us continue the lovely adventures of Nathan Prescott and Warren Graham, shall we? Let's see if I can actually pull this off...

Enjoy!

Rapid Heartbeats in Sync

Chapter Two

by

xLazyxWriterx

for ROSES R VIOLET

October 11, 2013

Morning

Sleep lingered in the deep corners of his eyes as they fluttered open. His vision was fuzzy with colors blurring into one another. His mouth was parted slightly, his tongue moist with the lingering taste of blood and sweat. He filled his lungs full of the fresh air that wafted in through his window, his chest rising and falling slowly. Heavy hands raised to rub at his face before landing on his chest. His eyes fully adjusted to the morning light, and goosebumps rose along his exposed skin. He kicked the blanket off and sat up, his body aching with the need to be stretched.

How did he manage to fall asleep...?

Nathan allowed a tiny smirk to play on his lips before swinging his legs over the side of the bed. He stretched his arms before him, enjoying the feeling in his sore muscles. For the first time in so long, his head didn't pound angrily and nausea didn't threaten his senses. His back was bruised and his nose was a bit tender, but that was the extent of it.

The shittiness of the fight before still lingered in his mind, but the memories were cast away by the recollection of moist lips and wide, dark eyes. Fuck, he could still feel the silkiness of tousled locks on his fingertips. Nathan's tongue darted out to wet his chapped bottom lip. It was still busted, but not nearly as swollen.

When Nathan stood, he didn't stumble. There was no nausea, or throbbing heads. Instead, his stomach was tight and his heart beat softly in his chest. His breathing was even, and eyes awake.

In only his dark red sweatpants, he grabbed his shower supplies and left his room. The hall was brightly lit, and the buzz of several conversations filled the area. Zach and Logan chatted, Evan was leaving the bathroom, and Trevor was looking at the bulletin with Justin. He gave a small nod at Zach when heard his name be called, but didn't stop. He headed straight for the showers.

Two of the showers were occupied, but no one - dammit - else was there. He got in one of the stalls, setting his stuff down and tugging his sweats and briefs off. He tossed them aside and turned the water on. Liquid heat washed over him, and he sighed. He closed his eyes, and let the water wash over his face. He reached for his shampoo and lathered his hair up, the scent of minty pine swirling with the misty air.

"You're right, I don't know anything about you."

Heavy sighs.

Nathan rinsed his hair, the soap tickling as is slid down his skin. He squirted some body wash into his palm before rubbing it into his flesh. He ran his fingers over his shoulder and down his arms. Foamed soap ran down his chest and legs before swirling down the drain.

"You might be a decent guy and no one would know it."

Warm breaths.

He heard one of the other showers shut off before a the sound of a curtain being pushed aside. He turned his body around to clean himself of the lathered foam.

"No one should be kicked while they're down. "

Silent whispers.

His eyes drooped shut, and his fingers traveled lower.

"This will never work."

Surrounding heat.

Before his hand could reach his destination, the water chilled and his eyes snapped open. Damn, how long had he been in here? Making sure he was fully rinsed, he shut the water off, shivering lightly. He grabbed his towel, drying his face and body. Outside the stall, the door opened and footsteps made their way to the sink.

Once Nathan was dry enough, he wrapped the towel around his waist and gathered his belongings. Pulling the curtain aside, his heart skipped and he froze where he stood.

Warren was curled over a sink, brushing his teeth. Next to him, Daniel was cleaning his glasses while making polite conversation. Warren kept his distant eyes on the sink, nodding at what Daniel was saying. Nathan bit his lip, taking a slow step forward, his eyes stuck on Warren. His hair was wet, and his white t-shirt clung to his back. Nathan's eyes wondered up and down his figure, his heart rate quickly picking up. Suddenly, he wished that he had bothered to bring some clean clothes.

Warren spat in the sink, cupping his hand a filling it with water. He swished the water in his mouth before spitting it into the sink.

Daniel noticed Nathan, but paid no attention. Warren tucked his toothbrush back in with his shower supplies before grabbing his towel to wipe his mouth with. Nathan could see Warren's face in the mirror, and could tell he was in a deep thought and barely listening to Daniel. When Warren turned around, shower supplies in arm, his eyes met Nathan's.

Warren visibly tensed, and his eyes instantly darted to Daniel. Warren hurried out of the shower room, Daniel right behind him.

What was the word Nathan was looking for...? He felt offended, and - fuck! - a bit hurt. He almost wanted to kick that door open and track Warren down. Fuck, wouldn't that be a sight? Warren fleeing down the hall with a practically naked Nathan chasing after him. Yeah, that wouldn't tip anyone off.

Emotions swelled in his chest as he shoved the door open, and the cool air hit him hard. Looking down the hall, there was no Warren. He saw Daniel heading for the bathroom, but paid no attention to him. Warren probably went back to his room. The thought of going over and pounding on his door occurred to Nathan, but then that image didn't look much better than the previous one.

Ignoring everyone else within the dorms, Nathan headed back to his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

He was pissed. He knew he really shouldn't be, but he was. Damn it, if that fat kid hadn't been there...Fuck. Nathan set his shower supplies down and tore off his towel. He slipped on a pair of clean underwear, and searched his closet.

What would he have done if Warren had been alone? Probably the same this as yesterday, but that time...he wouldn't have let Warren run away. He would have held Warren down and - Jesus, fuck!

Last night seemed so much closer, as if had happened mere moments ago. Nathan could still feel Warren's rapid heartbeat in sync with his, as well as the heaviness of arousal in the air. They were melted against each other, and Nathan had never felt such heat. The noises they made - smacking and heavy breaths - were the only thing heard in the night, and the isolation almost made Nathan throw him down and ravish him. Fuck, the urge was still strong. But, he hadn't. Instead, Warren had abrupt stood, fixing his shirt to cover the front of his pants and smoothing out his hair. Even in the darkness, Nathan could make out how pink and puffy his lips had become. Warren had shaken his head with an short laugh that only held embarrassment, avoiding Nathan's eye. When Nathan stood as well, Warren had dashed into the building before Nathan could even steady himself.

He had thought about chasing him then, too. Again, another bad image.

Last night, he didn't remember entering the building or even going in his room. The next thing he remembered was him tearing the clothes from his body and exploring himself in ways he had never imagined, all while the flashes of him and Warren were playing in his mind. Fuck, he hadn't felt that damn good in so long.

Now, he felt like absolute shit.

Nathan buttoned up his white shirt slowly, a frown pulling at his lips. He knew Warren would never say anything about last night. No one would ever believe him, anyway. Plus, he would be on the receiving end of faggot and queer jokes for the rest of his time at Blackwell if he did.

He should have expected Warren to avoid him, though. He got his hopes up too high, and that was his mistake. Now, he was going to feel shitty for the rest of the morning, or possibly the rest of the day. He pulled on his usual red jacket, slipped his shoes on, and headed out the door.

October 11, 2013

Evening

Nathan couldn't keep his thoughts straight - fuck, literally - and people were beginning to notice. Victoria kept asking him if he was fine, and he kept brushing her off. He knew she could tell it wasn't drugs that was making him so unfocused and quiet. He wasn't about to tell her about last night, either. He's have to kill her if he did.

Nathan had bothered to even go to class just to keep his mind busy. It didn't work, but it was worth the effort.

Now, Nathan parked his car in the parking lot of the Two Whales Diner. He had skipped breakfast and lunch and his stomach was screaming at him for the mistreatment. Hopping out of his car, he slammed the door shut, locking it. He strode across the lot, noticing the lack of people. The townspeople of Arcadia Bay seemed to be spooked this past week with the weird weather and dead birds. Fuck, why didn't anyone pick up the bodies? That had to be a bad omen to leave the corpses of falling birds in the roads and on the sidewalks. Nathan stepped over a bluejay, a slight flash of gloved fingers crossing his mind before he pulled the door open.

The smell of fresh cook burgers and seasoned fries hit him, and he inhaled deeply. A few truckers were sat on the stools in front, but other than that the booths were mostly empty. Mostly. Nathan turned and stopped in his tracks at the sight of tousled brown hair.

Nathan recognized those shoulders, and that dark green shirt. Warren's back was to him, and he was tapping his fingers along the table. He was alone. Nathan chewed on his bottom lip, his chest pulsating and his stomach twisting. If he went over there, Warren would more than likely ignore him. Then, Nathan would let his temper get the best of him and he would go off on Warren. Then, there would be this huge scene and shit would go down. Shit, he didn't need that. But, he didn't want to avoid the guy either. Fuck, he stuck his fucking tongue in his mouth not even twenty-four hours ago! Avoiding him would make it like it never happened, and Nathan would be damned if that was the outcome of the whole ordeal.

Fuck, okay. Nathan could admit it to himself: he was attracted to the guy. Yeah, fine. Why him, of all people? The fucker bothered to care. Nathan couldn't think of a single other person who had dragged his wasted ass back to his dorm before he passed out, or someone who had dared to call him out on his bullshit and then genuinely apologize. Warren apologized because he felt bad, not because Nathan's father made him. And, if he were being totally honest, Nathan deserved it. He had ripped up the picture of that selfie ho and Warren.

Warren had every reason to ignore his existence, but he didn't. Instead, he met Nathan at the dorms last night with an ice packet and a wet washcloth.

...And Nathan pretty much jumped the fucking guy against his will. Way to go, asshole.

Nathan must have stood there glaring at the back of Warren's head for a while because one of the waitresses came over and asked him if he needed anything. He didn't even look at her as he shook his head.

Fuck it.

Nathan pushed past the waitress and over to Warren's table. Warren was looking down at the menu with a class of Coke in his hand. He took a sip, turning the menu over. Nathan stood there, staring. When Warren glanced up, he almost choked on his drink. Nathan could see his cheeks flush as he coughed into a napkin.

When Warren had calmed down, Nathan asked, "Mind if I sit?"

"Yeah, I do mind." Warren said flatly.

Nathan raised a brow. "Great," he said, sliding into the booth across from him. Nathan grabbed one of the spare menus, attempting to look casual under Warren's glare.

"What do you want?" Warren asked quietly. Before Nathan could answer, the waitress come over and asked him what he would like to drink.

"Water," he answered, his eyes never tearing from Warren's. The waitress smiled, and asked if they were ready to order.

"Not yet," Warren spoke up. The waitress nodded, seeming to notice the tension around them and leaving. Nathan leaned on the table, crossing his arms. He studied Warren's face. He could barely make out the bruise that once lingered on his eye, and he was a bit relieved. His dark eyes darted down to the table, and he sighed.

"Lemme guess, 'You better keep your fucking mouth shut, or else I'll split open your other eye,' right?" Warren said bitterly "Well, you can fucking save it."

Nathan's jaw tightened, and he told himself to breathe. "Why did you help me?" Nathan asked, attempting to ignore Warren's previous statement.

"What?" Warren sounded genuinely confused.

"Why did you fucking come down last night and help me?" he repeated more harshly.

Warren frowned. "Pity." The word slipped off his tongue and shot through Nathan's chest.

"What?" Nathan spat.

"Unlike you, I take others feelings into consideration. I yelled at you, and felt bad. I was studying last night and happened to see you walking back all beat up." Warren took another sip of his drink. "But, if I had known what was gonna happen, I wouldn't've even bothered."

Nathan wanted nothing more than to lunge across the table and choke him. Nathan's fingers twitched and he reached up and smoothed his hair back.

"You act as though you didn't enjoy-"

"I didn't!" Warren snapped. "You fucking mauled me, you asshole!"

"Your dick said otherwise." Nathan smirked. "Did you sleep well last night, by chance?" Nathan's tone was mocking, and he didn't mean for it to be. Warren's face flushed with anger and embarrassment, his grip tightening on the glass of Coke. His eyes were narrowed, and Nathan could tell he had his teeth clenched.

Before Nathan realized what he was doing, he leaned over as far as he could, and whispered, "Because I had a hell of a time getting off."

When the Coke hit Nathan's face, he fell back in his seat, eyes squeezed shut. Warren slammed the glass down hard, getting up from the booth and rushing out of the diner. It took Nathan a moment to register what had happened, but when he did, he shouted after Warren. "Hey!"

Nathan grabbed a couple napkins, drying his face as he got up. The other customers watched as he ran after Warren.

Warren was half way to his car when Nathan got outside. His neck and hair was sticky with the cola, and he could taste it on his lips. He spotted Warren, and immediately chased him. Warren must not have cared that Nathan was running up to him because he didn't even try to get away. When Nathan caught up to him, he reached out and roughly grabbed Warren's arm.

"Hey! Don't you fucking run aw-"

"Don't touch me, you fucking creep!" Warren jerked his arm free, continuing his way to his car. Nathan could feel his blood rushing, and panic rising in his chest. Warren was not getting away that fucking easy. Nathan followed Warren to his car, and before Warren could get his keys out, Nathan turned him around and shoved him against the vehicle.

"Look, dude, what do you fucking want!? I don't know what your goddamn problem is, but you better leave me the fuck alone!"

"Or what?" Nathan dared. He had the front of Warren's shirt balled in his fist, and their faces were close enough that he could feel Warren's breath on his face.

"Or someone's going to see and then everyone will know your damn secret!" Warren exclaimed.

Fuck, that hadn't occurred to him. Shit, they were in a public parking lot. Nathan whipped his head around, his eyes scanning for any witnesses. He spotted a fisherman handing out flyers and pretending not to see them, and Nathan let out a frustrated groan. He let go of Warren's shit, and stepping back. Warren readjusted his shirt, digging into his pocket for his keys.

Shitshitshit! Nathan knew that he had fucking fucked everything up. Of course he had! He always ruined everything! He couldn't be a goddam normal human being and have a civil talk in the diner with Warren. No, he had to poke and poke until he got bit.

Warren had been right; he was a piece of shit.

"I tore up the picture." Nathan blurted out. Warren dropped his keys, mumbling a curse before looking at Nathan with narrowed eyes.

"What?"

"I was the one who tore up your picture." Nathan crossed his arms, staring down at his feet. "You were right. I did it. You didn't need to apologize. You were right..."

They stood there in silence. Nathan's chest hurt, and he felt twitchy. He waited for Warren to get in his car and drive away...possibly back over him and put him out of his misery. But, it never came. Instead, he heard Warren mumbled, "You sonofabitch." Warren rubbed at his face, and began to laugh.

The laughter reminded Nathan of last night, and he wanted to swallow them. He wished that he could rewind back to last night and relive it. Maybe he could've done something different; something that would prevent this argument and leave them pressed together as they were. It was never that simple, though.

There was no replay button in life.

"I can't believe this." Warren said to himself more than to Nathan. "This is just-"

"You didn't hate last night." Nathan interrupted. If he was going to screw everything up then he was at least going to get some answers. "You just said that it would never work."

Warren rolled his eyes. "And you were dandy with that-"

"No! I just- ah, fuck. I am just sick of people telling me how to act and how to feel, dammit!" Nathan stepped closer to Warren. "That's why I did what I did. No one ever did that for me. Fuck, not even my own father. He would rather shit on me than actually care. Okay? Yeah, I threw myself at you and enjoyed it. You did, too, so don't even lie."

Warren shook his head. "You don't even like me-"

"I never said that!" Nathan snapped. "So, shut up. Yeah, I say shitty things, and I do shitty stuff, but I don't actually mean most of it. Well, some of it. Fuck, whatever."

"You headbutted me and then punched me. Repeatedly."

Nathan bit his lip. "Like I said, I don't mean some of it."

Warren let out a frustrated sigh, grabbing his keys from the ground. "I can't believe I'm having this conversation with you." He sounded exhausted, and Nathan figured that he had drained the guy dry with their argument.

"I don't take back what happened." Nathan said. "I'm sorry."

They were caught in another silence. Fuck, goddammit, shitshitshit...Nathan glared back at the fisherman that was watching them, and the fisherman pretended to focus on something else.

"This will never work." Warren said.

Nathan stiffened. He returned his gaze to Warren's face. His dark eyes were tired yet emotions seemed to pool within them. Nathan felt his empty stomach flutter, and it seemed like last night was only seconds ago.

Fuck it.

And fuck that fisherman.

Nathan's hands shot out and caught the sides of Warren's head, and their lips collided. The nerves in Nathan's face flared, and he instantly opened and moved his mouth against Warren's, swallowing any words that dared to escape. The pulled apart, their lips making a wet noise as they separated.

"What the hell am I doing...?" Warren murmured softly against Nathan's mouth. Nathan smirked slightly, bringing him in for another lip lock as an answer. Nathan pressed their chests together, and once again, their heartbeats were in sync. The fisherman, the worries, the guilt, and the anger was gone. Nathan knew this would never work, and he didn't care. As long as Warren didn't care either, and didn't try to run and hide from him, it didn't matter.

Fuck expectations. All of them.

Nathan didn't need this to work.

Owie. Fingers. Pain. ...Kiss them better?

Just kidding. Don't touch me. We haven't reached that stage in our relationship yet. Calm down.

Thanks for reading!

xLazyxWriterx